Press Releases
12/29/2022
2023 Connecticut Duck Stamp Reproductions Now Available
Artwork Features Atlantic Brant Painted by Connecticut Artist Sophie Archer
(HARTFORD, CT) – Connecticut’s Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) is pleased to announce that the 2023 Connecticut Migratory Bird Conservation (Duck) Stamp, which features Connecticut artist Sophie Archer’s depiction of an Atlantic brant, is now available in limited quantity as a Conservation Edition Print. Sophie, of Old Lyme, is the two-time winner of the Connecticut Junior Duck Stamp contest.
The prints are $200 each and all proceeds go towards the enhancement of wetland and associated upland habitats in the state. Conservation Edition Prints are all signed by the artist, and three of the prints are remarqued in pencil with a pair of brant. Those interested in purchasing a Conservation Edition Print should contact DEEP Wildlife Division biologist Min Huang at min.huang@ct.gov or 860-418-5959.
The sale of Connecticut Duck Stamps has generated more than $1.5 million since 1993. More importantly, this money has been used to leverage other funds for habitat conservation, resulting in more than $4,753,000 in actual conservation dollars spent. More than 3,845 acres of wetlands at over 50 sites in the state, mostly on state-owned wildlife management areas, have been restored or enhanced, and 75 acres of critical wildlife habitat purchased, thanks to Duck Stamp funds.
Sophie’s painting marks the third overall painting, and her second, to grace the Connecticut Duck Stamp that was also the winning artwork for the Connecticut Junior Duck Stamp Contest.
After previously holding a nationwide contest to represent the Connecticut Duck Stamp, the Duck Stamp Committee now promotes local artists and their respective schools, as well as the connection between art and nature by using the Junior Duck Stamp artwork as the State stamp image. This change ensures that artwork from a Connecticut artist is featured on the Duck Stamp.
The Connecticut Junior Duck Stamp Program, which is administered by the Connecticut Waterfowl Association (CWA), includes an educational curriculum that all submitting artists participate in. The curriculum provides a meaningful introduction to the importance and benefit of wetlands and clean water and gives context to the waterfowl species the students are painting. Creative young artists who are Connecticut residents can now enter the 2023 Connecticut Junior Duck Stamp competition – entries are due on March 15, 2023. More information about the Connecticut Duck Stamp and the annual Junior Duck Stamp Contest is on the DEEP website at https://portal.ct.gov/DEEP/Wildlife/CT-Duck-Stamp.
The Connecticut Duck Stamp Fund is the sole source of state funds for wetland projects in the state. It creates an important annual revenue stream dedicated to wetland conservation in Connecticut and also helps leverage federal funding for wetlands projects in the state, such as Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act funding generated by hunters. The Duck Stamp Program is a great example of how the North American Conservation Model works: users of the resource pay into funds whose monies are solely dedicated to conservation. These resources have benefitted many of the approximately 274 birds, fish, amphibians, and reptiles of the state that rely upon clean, healthy wetlands.
Image of the artwork for the 2023 Connecticut Duck Stamp painted by Connecticut artist and CT Junior Duck Stamp Contest winner Sophie Archer.
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Contact
DEEP Communications
DEEP.communications@ct.gov
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